The Punisher: City of Hate
by The One-Bullet Anti-Hero
Summary: Frank Castle takes on a NeoNazi group Hell bent on destroying the SubHuman population of New York City.
1. Chapter 1 These Mean Streets

"**The Punisher: City of Hate"**

**The Reverend followed the short line of congagrets out through the big oak doors of the once beautiful inner-city church.The Reverend was dissapointed,although he was used to having to preach to only a few people at the 10:00 Mass,he was saddened by how,over the years,he had watched as the people in the seats grew smaller and smaller,to where the only people were the bums looking to sleep somewhere warm. **

**"At least its used for something good," he mumbled as he entered back through those same oak doors.**

**He heard a cough and looked to his left. A bum sat there,coughing,and shivering,for he had just come from the bitter cold that had engulfed the night outside. The reverend found the basket of that nights offerings to the church.There was only a few dollars and some change.He scooped up the money and walked back to the bum.**

**"Here," said the Reverend.The Bum gazed down at the money that had just been placed on his lap,as if it appeared there by magic.**

**The bum looked up,"Th...th...thank you..." he managed to stammer. **

"**Spend it on a hot meal," Reverend replied.**

**Turning away from the benches back toward the altar, he gazed upon a man that stood in front of the altar, seeming to gaze up at the crucifix that hung on the wall behind it. He walked slowly up behind the man. The man was tall, and looked muscular, but the Reverend could not tell for sure, because the man wore a long trenchcoat.He had dark hair, and as he walked up next to him, noticed that he had a few scars along his face. "Looking for salvation, son?"**

**The man didn't move, didn't turn to acknowledge him, and for a moment, the Reverend wondered if he had stumbled upon some weird statue that had been misplaced in front of his altar. The man finally moved, his face, while still turned away, inclined his face more toward the Reverend.**

"**Salvation...from what? "His voice was a low growl, that stunned the Reverend.**

"**From God, my son..."**

**The man turned toward him, and the Reverend caught a glimpse of the mans eyes, and saw something there, something...frightening...**

**"Oh ..Him..." and with that, the man turned away and started walking back down the aisle to the big wooden doors.**

"**You can't run away from God, my son. He is always there, and he will always be there, if you need him.."**

**The man stopped and turned, gazing back at the Reverend.**

"**Really?",the man said, his voice had a hint of dark sarcasm.**

"**Always," the Reverend replied. **

**The man gazed at him ,his eyes solemn.**

"**Walk these streets at night, then say that to me.."**

**The man turned towards the door again, and his trench coat went back a little. Just enough for the Reverend to see the grotesque white skull on the mans t-shirt. In that moment he understood who the man was, for that symbol had been in the papers so many times, always accompanied by a headline which contained murder, and the man named Frank Castle. The man they called "The Punisher."**

**Castle turned toward the door, and exited out those big oak doors. Of course the Reverend knew the story, it had been reprinted in the newspaper thousands of times, so that every new generation could learn the tale of Frank Castle. The Reverend remembered the photos from the scene, of that mans family lying sprawled on the ground, with sheets covering the corpses. A mother, a son, and a daughter...**

**The Reverend had sympathized with that man when he had first read the story, but only now, after to all these years could he fully realize what it had done to him. Castle was now known for at least a thousand murders of known criminals, sometimes not known until after the police searched the "victims" premises. How the hate and violence of the world had had impacted that man with the force of a freight train, that was carrying a nuclear payload. Of course, the Reverend knew all about hate, growing up Black during the 50's-60's,yes,he KNEW all about hate.**

**When he grew up later, and saw all the changes that were being made, the rights he was given, he hoped he would never had to see that hate again.Yet,here he was, staring at the big oak doors that Castle had walked out of, and his hopes were crushed, he had seen that hate again, but it was hate of a different nature.Hate,not for a race or a religion, or some other nonsense like that. But a hate for a TYPE of people, who chose greed and violence as their perogative,and ignorance as their guide. Was there a good type of hate then?**

**He decided not to let his thoughts answer that question. He turned from the door and started back towards his office, behind the altar. Yet little did he know, that that hate that he feared the most was waiting just outside those big oak doors. That hate was taken in the form of Henry Lawson.**

**Henry Lawson was edgy...but excited. He had watched the congaret's leave the church, and had waited a little longer to make sure any stragglers would leave. Sure enough, a big man in a trench coat left a few minutes after. Henry checked the two men behind him. Danny Elfsman and Ron Eisenberg,two radicals straight from the top had been sent with him on this. They had done a few missions, but none as important as this. This night, they would chose to reveal their existence to the world. He smiled at that thought, finally their plans were in motion. **

**He had dreamed of this since he was a kid, listening to his father telling him stories of his adventures with the "kluckers". Later, he was kicked out of high school, for nearly beating to death a Jew. He then would join the army, but was thrown out from there because he was implicated in the murder of a Black Captain, but nobody could prove it. That's when he joined up with this group. All hardcore fanatics, all hungry for the purifying of thw white race. There leader was smart, his plans were full-proof, and when Lawson had heard them, he couldn't believe his eyes.**

**"A lot of people were going to die before the end of this",he had said.**

**When he had read over the plans and been briefed.**

"**That's the point isn't it boy?" the Leader had said" Just make sure its the people we want to die."**

**His war started tonight, over the next month the real battles would be fought. It would end with the domination of the white race. Once they had won, the government would surely understand that what they did was right, and would give them amnesty, and allow them to cleanse the rest of the country. They just needed to be cleansed of the Jew-bastards that run the fucking country...Henry realized he had been sitting to long and Dan and Ron were fidgeting around behind him."Okay..lets go", he said. With that, the three men got up and walked across the street to those big oak doors. **

**Frank noticed them immediately. 3 guys just sitting in an alley...watching him.Frank's eyes were turned away from them,but his hand slid down his side to the waiting .45 in its holster. He had come light that night, he only had his .45 and 3 clips on him. An M-16 waited in a car down the street, but Frank didn't think there was time to get it. If these mooks were gonna move they were gonna move now. As he walked, he gave a quick glance behind him. The mooks were moving, but not after him, but to the church across the street. They weren't looking at him, so he turned and crouched down behind a parked car. He watched the men as they moved up the steps. His eyes narrowed as he watched one of the men draw something from the inside of his coat. What could 3 guys want in a church this time of night? Some people would be surprised to hear that a group of armed men knocked off a church...He wouldn't. he heard his own words in his head, "Walk these streets at night...". Now the Reverend wouldn't have to walk these streets, they were coming to him.**


	2. Chapter 2 The Holy Ghost

"**_The Punisher: City of Hate"_**

_**Chapter 2- " The Holy Ghost "**_

The Reverend had his back to the door when he heard it open.

"Have you decided to stop running from God, Mr. Castle?"his words trailed off as he turned to see three men enter.

One had a .38 pointed at the Reverend.

"What do you want, the offerings for the night are gone, we have nothing.." The Reverend spoke, a hint of pleading fear crossing his voice.

The men walked right up to him. The man who seemed to be the leader, strode up to him,and looked into his eyes.For the secong time that night,he saw that hate he had been fearing his entire life.

That was when the punch connected with his face,knocking him to the floor.The Leader looked at him and smiled. Then he began to slid off his coat, then shirt. Bearing his chest.

"Do you see this?" the man asked.

The Reverend stared at the large symbol on the mans chest,a symbol that should have been gone 50 years ago.A large swastika with a sword through the top dominated the mans upper turso.

"DO YOU SEE THIS!" the man yelled.

The Reverend looked up."Yes," he almost whimpered.

."Are you AFRAID of this symbol?", the man asked, his voice loud and dominate on the word "afraid".

The Reverend tried to stand up,he was knocked off his feet.

"SIT DOWN BOY,I WOULD HAVE ASKED YOU TO STAND IF I WANTED YOU TOO,NOW ANSWER MY QUESTION,DOES THIS SYMBOL FRIGHTIN' YOUR NIGGER ASS!",He screamed.

"Yes...", the Reverend as he stared into the skinhead's eye's

."Good, we have chosen you to give your "people" and the rest of those sub-human fucks, a message from us.."

The man pulled a letter from his coat pocket.

"Stand up" he said.

The Reverend stood up.

"God sees everything you do,how will Saint Peter judge you?" the Reverend asked, eye's pleading as they searched for a hint of humanity in the Nazi's eyes.

."He'll thank me" said the man,and with that he took the knife from his pocket,and cut the Reverends throat.

His jugular spilled blood across his robes,and the Reverend felt his shirt being undone,and the knife cut into his chest.his eyes were rolling from the loss of blood and pain.Then he saw those big doors open, and he managed a smile as he finally let the last breath ease from his body, as he met his God.

Frank opened the doors and wasn't expecting the scene he was about to see.

He saw a man crouched over the Reverend,who was spread out on the altar with blood running from his throat,A man whose shirt was off,was crouched over him and had seemed to just finished carving something in the Reverends chest. Two men were behind the altar,spraying,what smelt like gas,on the gigantic cross behind the altar.Frank looked back at the Reverend and could have sworn a smile played across the man's face before his eyes closed forever.

One of the men spraying the altar,looked at Frank as he entered.

"SHIT",the man screamed,the man pulled his .38 and took aim.

Frank was already moving,.45 in hand.He dived into the row of pews just as the .38 was fired,the bullets slamming into the old sturdy wood.

Frank came up and fired at the three men.The other two had realized what was happening by now,and were moving.

The shirtless guy screamed,"Light it,and lets get the fuck outta here!"

Frank came up and pulled the trigger,the hammer came down and ignited the gun powder in the casing sending the bullet right into the man with the .38's head.

"SHIT!" screamed shirtless,and grabbed the .38.

The other man crawled toward the cross and placed a match on it, The cross went up in flames. Frank rolled down the aisle and came up firing again,sending both men ducking for cover,and shirtless firing blind.

The clip ran dry and Frank ducked into another set of pews to reload.The clip snapped into place and Frank came up and took aim,but hesitated at what he saw.

Shirtless now had a hostage,a bum.

"You want smells like shit here to die,you fuck?" Shirtless screamed.

Frank didn't answer,his eyes tracked the movements of the other man as he tried to use the pews as cover,Frank looked for a pattern in the pews,to see when the man would be without the use of his cover.

Distantly he heard"PUT THE GUN DOWN!" from shirtless,but that didn't matter.

The other man had momentarily lost some of his cover from a groove in the pews

Frank whirled around and ducked,the .45 finding its mark in between the grooves in the pew,and he fired.He heard a yelp of pain as the bullet connect with whatever part of the body the bullet struck.He rolled up to his feet and was about to fire over the bums shoulder into shirtless,when shirtlesses bullet connected with him.

The bullet hit dead center of the flak vest he was wearing pushing him back and knocking the air from him. Though the bullet had been stopped he could still feel part of the bullet trying to work its way in...Shirtless released the man and ran through a door in the back,the bum staggered to the floor and crawled over to Frank

"You need help mister?"Frank went to stand up and give chase but couldn't find the air to do so.

"Get..outta...here" he said to the Bum.The bum looked at him, and nodded as he ran out the big oak doors.Thats when Frank heard the whimpering.

Frank stood up,the wound was painful but it could have been worse.He pulled up his shirt,and gazed down at the kevlar vest,there was a small rip just over his heart.

"Much worse,"he thought.

He ignored the burning cross behind him and turned towards the whimpering man and walked over. The bullet had grazed over the mans back,a long line traced the path of the bullet. The flames behind him were the only light in the room,but in the gathering darkness,he could just see the tears forming in the mans eyes.

"Get up." he growled.

The man said nothing,just laid there.

"Alright,I'll help you..."and with that Frank grabbed the man by the hair and dragged him toward the Reverends body.

"You helped kill this man,why?"

The man started to laugh."You'd think I'd tell you?What for,you'll kill me anyway.."

Frank picked him up,and slammed his face against the altar,then dragged him to the burning cross.He propped the man up and inched his face towards the flames.The man screamed.

"FINE..FINE!Theres a note...,"the man whimpered.

"Where?" asked Frank.

The man cried,and brought his hands to his face.

"Over there...on...on the body..."said the mans muffled voice.

Frank threw the man back,away from the cross.The flames were getting higher,and he could finally hear sirens in the distance. He turned away and moved toward the body,when he heard the most peculiar sound.

Laughing.

It came from the man,who had moments ago been crying

."You think your gonna win?" he asked mockingly as he stood up."We'll kill you with the rest of them." A deep grin spread across the mans face."Or better yet..I'll KILL you.."

With that the man produced a switchblade.Frank,caught off guard at first,had little time to dodge the first stab,but immediaetly caught on to the style.

The man was high on adrenaline,his swings taking him off balance.Frank caught his next swing,then using the mans momentum,pulled the mans knee into his waiting foot.What resulted was a resounding CRACK! as bone split.

The man stumbled backwards,screaming.He fell right into the burning cross.The screams grew even louder as the flames overtook the insane radical.the man crawled away as the flames engulfed him,the pitch of the scream growing higher.The image rekindled something in Franks brain..

"Naplam..." he whispered.

All of a sudden he was back in the jungle,He had called for a blanket nap' of the entire area,but the planes had missed there target,it had landed on Castle,and his men. They crawled and staggered every which way,the smell of roasted flesh and the pitch of screams rose in volume.

He watched as Pvt. Hall crawled toward him,burning arm outstreched,eyes pleading,and Frank did now what he had done then,he aimed his .45 and put a bullet in the burning radicals head.

The screams stopped,the memories faded..for now.

Frank found himself here and now,standing next to a burning cross and three dead men. His eyes caught the golden form of a crucifix,but he looked away and turned back towards the body of the Reverend. He found the note on the Reverends chest, and he began to read.


End file.
